Wonderfully acted, with McDiarmid giving a performance whose greatness is in its lack of ego, it is a triumph that restores your faith in theatre and restores Bond to his place as the greatest of post-war British playwrights.
It's fun to read, despite the grim nature of its subjects, and given that McBain is Mr. Hunter's alter ego, it is also a literary gimmick.
But aside from feeding China's growing geopolitical ego, it could make sense.
Whether over money or ego, it is easy to cross the line.
What balm for a bruised ego it must be to hear that someone else still thinks you're worth it.
"The male ego it makes it hard for them to think that they got beat by a woman," he added.
"It has to do with aesthetics, it has to do with ego, it has to do with money.
And while Hammond's self-love is normally more than enough to satisfy his ego, it does sometimes leave him rather short-handed in the Commons.
At the risk of swelling Salmond's ego, it is worth noting that his insurgent "Yes to independence" campaign was ahead of the curve.
"This wasn't about ego; it was about recovery," said Joseph J. Lhota, a former deputy mayor, referring to Mr. Giuliani's effort to stay on.
Introducing him with a warning that "many think him an annoying motormouth with an inflated ego", it contained a selection of self-promoting pronouncements.
